PLDT and its wireless unit Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) equip students of Adamson University with cybersecurity information to make them CyberSmart in the age of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
“Data is the new gold. We must avoid oversharing our personal information because this might be used to take over our accounts or steal our identity. And hackers have been using A.I. to dupe their victims into giving up their personal data,” said Elijah Mendoza, Digital Communications Senior Manager at PLDT and Smart.
Highlighting the importance of practicing good data hygiene, Mendoza warned students about ‘social engineering’, a type of attack that manipulates victims into sharing confidential information. One common tactic is ‘phishing’ where criminals use AI to craft messages imitating legitimate entities and mass send them. These messages coax victims into clicking an embedded link that leads to a malicious domain that mimics the appearance of an organization’s official domain. The malicious site asks for the victims’ login credentials and other sensitive information.
The efforts of PLDT and Smart to share #BeCyberSmart tips are rooted in their customer-centric culture where they aim to elevate the quality of customer experience by protecting them from threats and cyber-attacks. Aside from promoting the #BeCyberSmart culture, PLDT and Smart also relentlessly keep customers secure from cyber-attacks by preventing attempts to open malicious domains, and blacklisting malicious URLs and links tied to phishing, spams, hoaxes and other illegal activities.
